According to a recent poll conducted by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, it’s been found that most Americans don’t even know their credit scores. About 65 percent of the people in the US haven’t even tried to find their credit scores in the last few years. Although some people do understand the importance of credit scores, there is a need to teach the public about how important it is to keep track of their credit history. Why Should You Check Credit Score? If you want to apply for a home loan, car loan, or even a credit card, your lender is going to check on how well you’ve made past payments. That’s what the credit score denotes. A high score means that you’re responsible and you’ve been paying off bills and loans on time. When you know your credit score, you can negotiate for favorable terms and rates of interest. There are chances that there’s a mistake in your report. That can be potentially disastrous. Knowing how to spot errors in your credit report is a great way to ensure that you know how the system works so you can make the most of it. Even if you don’t have any plans of securing credits immediately, the free credit score will let you understand your own financial habits.

If you don’t know what a credit score is, then you’re not alone. About half the people in the US don’t know what a credit score is, and how it affects them. According to financial experts, credit scores are something that everyone should know about, since even retailers use this data to find out whether you’re a reliable person to do business with. Credit scores play an important role in all types of financial transactions. Some of the most crucial aspects where your credit score would matter include – The Requirement Of Credit While you should get free credit score for all your credit requirements, credit history also becomes a critical factor when you’re applying for any type of credit, signing up for utilities, insurance, or other big expenses. Everyone is required to know about credit reporting and credit scores. It’s an important aspect of their financial lives. You don’t want to stay in the dark about your credit history, since that can be potentially disastrous for you when you do go to apply for credit at a bank. That’s why you should apply for a free credit score report every year to see how you’ve been doing. Approval Of Loans With the rising awareness of credit scores and reports, it’s becoming important to understand the how credit scores impact your chances of securing loans and other credit from lenders.

The three major credit bureaus TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax are required by federal law to provide you with a free annual credit report. You have the option of getting all the three credit reports at the same time, or you may also order them individually as per your need. If you choose to order all three reports at the same time, you have the opportunity to compare them all and verify information. Be aware that, if you order all three at the same time, you may not order your free reports again for a full calendar year. Those choosing to order the free reports in a staggered manner will be able to track and verify new information like accounts and loans being added to the reports. Once you receive your credit report, look out for these details: Personal information Check if your social security number, birthday, employment address and status etc are correct. Inquiries This lists everybody who has reviewed your credit report in the past two years. Check for its accuracy. A credit check by a lender or a landlord is called Hard Inquiry, this also shows up on your credit report. Credit information See whether details about bank and credit accounts, credit limits, loans, balances and credit history are correctly mentioned.